Todwick Primary School

Overview

Todwick Primary School is rated as ‘Good’ across all inspection categories. The report describes a school where pupils feel ‘safe and happy’, demonstrating ‘enthusiasm for learning’ and positive relationships with staff. Leaders have established a culture based on clear values, ensuring pupils understand expectations for behaviour and bullying.

Strengths

• Pupils are ‘attentive, focused and enthusiastic’ in lessons, showing respect for teachers and one another.
• The curriculum is ‘ambitious’ with a strong focus on ‘high-quality and subject-specific vocabulary’, particularly in geography and history.
• There is a ‘clear love of reading’, supported by carefully chosen books and inviting reading areas.
• Early years provision offers a ‘well-planned, ambitious curriculum’ that builds foundations for future learning.
• Pupils engage enthusiastically with enrichment activities, including visits to mosques and the Houses of Parliament.

Areas to improve

• Governors must strengthen their understanding of statutory responsibilities, particularly regarding safeguarding, to ‘challenge and support leaders’ effectively.
• Leaders should ensure reading strategies are used ‘consistently’ across all phonics lessons and catch-up sessions to help pupils become fluent readers.
• In some subjects, leaders need to clearly define the most important knowledge to help pupils ‘make links between their learning’.

Safeguarding

The report states that ‘arrangements for safeguarding are effective’, noting that while initial procedures were not robust enough, leaders have since introduced ‘rigorous systems’ and a ‘robust culture of safeguarding’.